Penang Acar

Acar is a very typical Nyonya dish that will adrone the tables of any true-blue Peranakan in Malaysia. Acar is actually a Hindustani word for a spicy pickle.

In my hometown of Malaysia, this dish too is a pickle which is made up of various types of vegetables in a spicy sauce. Each Peranakan family would have their own family recipe where Acar is concerned. In fact the Acar found in Penang and that in Malacca varies as well. But whatever it is, it is delicious especially if eaten with rice.  Sometimes it is served together with Nasi Lemak (Coconut Rice) another typical Malaysian dish.



However the process of puting this dish together is somewhat labourious and therefore you cannot compare the homemade version to that found sold in supermarkets. The ground spices need to be prepared and there is lot of cutting and slicing involved. But once the dish is put together, you will be glad that you had put in such an effort because it is really delicious!

In the days of my grandmother, I remember that she would make Acar quite often especially when Chinese New Year was around the corner.  In those days, a food processor was non-existent and a mortar and pestel was used instead.  The blanched and cut vegetables would be strewn out onto wooden weaved rattan baskets and dried under the sun before it was drenched in the spicy sauce.  Nowadays recipes of our grandmothers are shortened and quick-easy shortcuts are taken.  Thinking back I really do miss some of the dishes my grandmother had made!


Penang Acar
Makes about 2.5kg
Recipe Adapted from "Malaysian" by Betty Saw

Ingredients to be cut:

1.25kg cucumber, half lengthwise, center core removed and cut into 1.5" long strips
1 large carrot, peeled and cut into 1.5" long strips
300g long beans, cut into 1.5" length
500g chinese cabbage, cut into 2.5" square pieces
300g cauliflower, cut into bit size florets
600g roasted peanuts, skin removed, and coarsely grounded
1 Tbsp + 1 tsp salt
450ml white vinegar
180g sugar
500ml cooking oil

Ingredients to be grinded (A):

20 pieces dried chillies soaked to soften
6 red chillies

Ingredients to be grinded (B):

360g shallots, peeled
1 bulb garlic, peeled
1" piece fresh tumeric, peeled
1" piece fresh galangal, peeled
4 candlenuts

Method:

1) Place cucumber and carrot strips in a bowl.  Mix weall with 1 Tbsp salt and leave for 30 minutes.  Then wash thoroughly with water and drain. Using a piece of muslin cloth, squeeze out as much water as possible from the vegetable strips.

2) Half fill a large pot with water, add half of the vinegar and bring to a boil.  Add a pinch of salt to the water.  Then blanch the vegetables in batches for about 4 minutes.  Remove and transfer to a colander, drain well.

3) Lay the blanced vegetables out in the sun to dry for about 30 minutes.  If there is no sun, place them under a fan to dry out for about 90 minutes

4) Heat a large wok or large frying pan.  Add the oil and once hot, fry ground ingredients (A) for 2 minutes.  Then add in ground ingredients (B) and fry until fragrant and the oil separates - about 10 minutes.  Add remaining vinegar, sugar and 1 tsp of salt.  Stir in the peanuts and mix thoroughly.

5) Last add in the vegetables and stir well.  Keep acar overnight in the refrigerator for the flavours to develop.  To serve, dish out and add a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds.

* Acar can be kept in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks.

Chocolate Coffee Flavoured Macarons

The urge to make macarons has struck me again.  I think I have to blame my girlfriend's daughter for this.  Her teenage daughter has been pestering me to give her a lesson in macarons.  I've been turning her down because I have not actually perfected the act as yet.  I have had my fair share of failures with cracked and burnt tops.  So in a way I really dare not commit until I have somewhat perfected this skill.

I shall not say that this time round I was successful as I did have about a quarter of my shells cracking. Even though they cracked the taste and flavour was still there.  The ones you see here in this post are the "better looking ones". 





Chocolate Coffee Flavoured Macarons

For the Shells:


110g powdered sugar


50g ground almonds


1 Tbsp dark cocoa powder
1/2 tsp espresso coffee powder

60g egg whites 
(about 2 eggs) *

35g granulated sugar

Cocoa nibs for topping, if desired

* Aged one day in room temperature.  If using fresh egg white, I would zap them in the microwave oven for about 12 seconds

Ganache: 

8 oz dark chocolate, chopped coarsely


8 oz heavy cream


1 tsp Kahlua or coffee liquer

Method:

1) Prepare two baking sheets with parchment or silpats and set aside.

2) Add the powdered sugar, almond meal, cocoa and coffee powder to a food processor and process to a fine, even powder.  When done, sift the contents into a large mixing bowl to remove any last lumps. Throw out the lumps. If there are quite a lot of lumps, return all ingredients back to the processer and continue to grind until fine. 

3) Add the egg whites to a clean dry bowl and whisk until frothy. Gradually add the granulated sugar and continue beating until the meringue holds stiff peaks.


4) Add one half of the meringue to the mixing bowl containing the almond meal mix and gently fold in until just barely mixed using a silicon spatula. Add the remaining meringue and continue to gently fold until the batter looks like flowing lava. It should be thick but should still spread (about 50 folds in total)

5)  Pipe out circles of batter on the prepared baking sheets approximately 1.5” wide in diameter. Allow some distance between the piped circles for spreading. When finished piping, rap the baking sheets a couple of times on the counter firmly to allow any air bubbles to settle. Sprinkle cocoa nibs on half of the shells.

6) Preheat the oven to 160C. Set the pans aside for at least 30 minutes to allow the macarons to dry and a skin to form on top. Test by gently poking with your finger. The macarons will be ready when dry to the touch and your finger only leaves a slight impression. 


7) When ready, bake for 12-14 minutes and rotate the pans midway through to ensure even baking and coloration. Remove to a rack to cool.

8) For the ganache, bring the cream to a simmer over medium high heat in a small saucepan. Place the chopped chocolate in a small bowl. When the cream has reached a simmer, pour it over the chocolate and set aside for a minute or two until the chocolate is mostly melted. Add the liquer. Use a whisk or spatula to stir the ganache to a smooth consistency. Set aside to allow the ganache to set up or place it in the refrigerator to cool which will hasten the process.

9) When cool, spread your ganache or other filling on the flat side of a shell and sandwich with another, squeezing gently.  Allow the macaron to rest overnight in the refrigerator. The cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to one week.

The Most Fabulous Banana Cake

I have always time and time again mentioned that I loved baking with bananas. They make such a great addition to desserts and are so easily available in this part of the world. This particular banana cake comes from one of my favourite cook books and it is a moist, dense cake that keeps well even after one week.

Because of the humid weather here in Singapore, I would usually place my unfinished cakes in the refrigerator after 2 or 3 days.  This cake kept extremely well and I just needed to thaw it slightly before having a slice with my morning or afternoon coffee.  It was that delicious and truly well worth it being called "The Most Fabulous Banana Cake Recipe"





The Most Fabulous Banana Cake Recipe
Adapted from "Mix & Bake" by Belinda Jeffery
Serves 12

Ingredients:

225g plain flour
3 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
3 - 4 very ripe banana (about 1 cup), mashed
340g castor sugar
2 eggs
125g unsalted butter, room temperature cut into small chunks
100ml buttermilk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup chopped walnuts

For topping:

2 ripen bananas, slice thinly for topping (optional)
1 Tbsp castor sugar

Method:

1) Preheat oven to 180C. Butter and line a deep 26cm ring tin or 2 loaf tins

2) Put the flour, baking powder, salt and bicarbonate sode into a food processor and whiz for about 15 seconds. Remove and tranfer into a bowl.

3) Add the bananas to the processor together with the eggs and sugar.  Whiz for 1 mintue.  Then add the butter and whiz for another minute until thick and creamy. Now add the buttermilk and vanilla extract and pulse in quick on/off bursts.  The add the flour and again mix it in with quick bursts, scrapping down the sides once or twice.  Do not overmix or cake will be tough.  Add the chopped walnuts and give it a quick stir with a spatula.  Scoop batter into prepared tin and smoothen out.

4) Optional: Place the sliced bananas on top of the batter and sprinkle with sugar.  B

5) Bake for about 30 - 35 minutes.  Do not open the oven during baking time or the center may sink.  Cool cake completely before unmoulding.

Spanish Chicken Casserole

This particular casserole makes a great dish for family gatherings or when you have friends around.  The unusual flavours of this cassrole and somewhat reminded me of a tarjin because it had the citrus taste of the lemon juice.  I made this over a Sunday weekend and had it with crusty bread which was just nice to mop up the gravy.  I froze the remaining left overs.



Spanish Chicken Casserole
Serves 4
Recipe Adapted from Women's Weekly

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp olive oil
4 chicken drumsticks
4 chicken thigh cutlets
1 large onion, chopped finely
4 medium potatoes, quartered
1/2 cup roasted pine nuts
3 cups chicken stock
1 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup lemon juice
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves
1 1/2 cup roughly chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
1 Tbsp roughly chopped fresh basil
Salt and black pepper to taste

Method:

1) Preheat oven to 180C.

2)  Heat oil in a large flameproof casserole dish, brown the chicken in batches and set aside.

3) In the same pot, cook the onions until soft.  Return chicken to the dish.  Add potato, nuts, stock, wine, juice, garlic, all the thyme and basil and half of the parsley. Bring to a boil.

4) Cover the dish and place in the oven to cook for about 1 hour or until chicken is cooked through.  Season with salt and pepper.

5) Once cooked, add the remain parsley, stir and dish out.  Serve with greens and crusty bread.

Passionfruit Souffle

I have now been baking for over 5 years now and I can't believe that I have never made a souffle before in my life plus eaten it only once in my entire life.  Amazingly it is such a simple recipe, typically made up for three to four ingredients only.

So when I had leftover passionfruit I was very tempted to use it in a dessert.  However I knew I would be busy over the next few weekends and decided to scrap the pulp out and freeze it.  So when it came time to actually put the souffle together, I was really excited.  I knew souffles have a tendency to deflate very quickly and as such I set up my camera and props to be ready to snap away when the ramikins were taken out of the fridge.  Luckily I was able to take my shots before they deflated out on me.






Passionfuit Souffle
Recipe Adapted from "Taste.com.au"
Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 tsp soften unsalted butter, to grease
1 tbs caster sugar
3 egg whites, at room temperature
70g caster sugar
180g passionfruit juice, seeds removed (about 3 - 4 passionfruit)

Method:

1) Preheat oven to 180°C.

2) Brush four 250ml (1-cup) ovenproof ramikins with butter. Sprinkle with the sugar, shaking off any excess.

3) Use an electric beater to beat egg whites in a large clean dry bowl until soft peaks form. Add extra sugar a spoonful at a time, whisking after each addition until well combined. Continue whisking until sugar dissolves.

4) Use large metal spoon to fold passionfruit into egg whites. Spoon in dishes. Use flat knife to smooth tops and place dishes on baking tray. Run a thumb around inside rim of dishes in souffle mixture. Bake in preheated oven for 12 minutes or until golden. Dust with icing sugar and serve immediately.

Chocolate Cupcakes

Unlike in the United States or in UK, cupcakes have never been much of a craze in Singapore until of late.  Overseas, especially in the United States, the cupcake trend really took off back in the late '90s when HBO's Sex and the City series made a mention of a New York bakery called Magnolia Bakery. Since then, the gourmet cupcake bakeries have been springing up and its popularity has not died down yet



Another well-known cupcake bakery is The Hummingbird Bakery which is located in London. Tarek Malouf, the founder of The Hummingbird Bakery has been selling cupcakes and other American treats for more than six years now.  The Hummingbird Bakery is located in three prime London locations and they sell around 22,000 cupcakes a week.


Chocolate Cupcakes Recipe
Adapted from The Hummingbird Bakery "Cupcakes & Muffins"
Makes 12 cupcakes

Ingredients:

100g plus 2 Tbsp all purpose flour
3 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
110g caster sugar (reduced from original)
11/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt 40g unsalted butter at room temperature
1 egg
120ml low-fat milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Method:
1) Pre-heat oven to 170C and line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.

2) Lightly beat the egg together with the milk and vanilla extract.  Set aside.

3) Add all other ingredients in a bowl and using a hand mixer beat on low speed until mixture resembles a sandy consistency and everything is combined

4) Slowly add in half of the milk/egg mixture and beat on slow.  Add in the remaining liquid and continue beating for another 2 minutes until the mixture is smooth.  Do not overmix.

5) Spoon the batter into the liners 2/3 full.  Bake for about 20 - 25 minutes or until the cupcake bounces back when touched.  Leave cupcakes to cool completely before frosting with your favourite frosting

Seared Tuna with Soy-Mirin Dressing

I like Bill Granger's recipes for its simplicity and ease in preparation. Most of his cook books are easy to follow and the ingredients are usually available in local stores. It does not have tonnes of intructions that runs into pages. This particular book which I have is pretty old. When I say simple instructions, it really has. It has one page with a picture of the dish and another page which has the entire recipe. The dishes come out delicious and looks as if it had taken a while for you to prepare.
This particular seared tuna recipe makes a greater starter for an elegant dinner party or looks just as great on a buffet table. I love tuna and I could not resist to buy it today especially when it was on a discount! Just the right timing for me to put this recipe together. Seared Tuna with Soy-Mirin Dressing
Recipe Adapted from "Bill's Sydney Food" by Bill Granger

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp black peppercorns, ground
1 Tbsp sea salt
1/2 cup finely chopped coriander
1/4 cup olive oil 500g tuna, cut into large batons, about 2" square at ends
1 cup shredded cucumber
1/4 cup of baby spinach leaves
1/4 cup coriander leaves
3 Tbsp mix of black and white sesame seeds
1/2 cup soy-mirin dressing (recipe below) Olive oil for drizzling (optional)

Method:

1) Place pepper, salt, coriander and olive oil in a bowl. Stir to combine.

2) Place tuna on a plate and pour the herb mixture, pressing it on all sides of the tuna with your hands. Then coat it with the sesame seeds.

3) Heat a non-stick frying pan on high heat. Sear the tuna for 20 seconds on each side. Remove from pan and set aside to rest for an hour.

Soy-Mirin Dressing:

1/2 cup mirin
1/2 cup soy sauce
3 Tbsp rice wine vinegar

Place everything into a bowl and stir to mix. Refrigerate until ready to assemble the dish.

To Assemble:

Slice tuna into 5mm slices and arrange in a circle, overlapping slightly onto individual plates. Top with the cucumber, spinach and coriander leaves. Pour 3 Tbsp of the dressing over each plate and serve. Sprinkle with extra white toasted sesame seeds and drizzle with a bit of olive oil. Serve immediately.